The following are the statements of purpose for each of the overlay zoning districts established in this Zoning Code.
(a) CO College Overlay District.
(1) The purpose of the College Overlay District (CO) is to promote and protect public health, 1.safety, and general welfare by providing permanent, uniform and consistently enforceable regulations governing the development of land in the immediate vicinity of the Defiance College campus in order to:
A. Preserve the historic use of campus grounds for educational, cultural and social purposes;
B. Accommodate the vehicular and pedestrian traffic generated by students and campus visitors;
C. Preserve historic structures on and adjacent to the college campus; and
D. Buffer the campus and established residential neighborhoods adjoining the campus from anticipated commercial development of the U.S. Route 24 and State Routes 15, 18 and 66 corridors.
(2) The overriding intent of this section is to accommodate and encourage public and commercial activities that are compatible with preservation of the college campus and surrounding college-oriented neighborhoods and discourage public and commercial uses that are incompatible with preservation of this unique environment that is of incalculable social, cultural and economic value to the community. The more specific purposes and intent of the regulations in Subsection 1169.09(a) CO College Overlay District Regulations are to:
A. Preserve employment, social, cultural and educational opportunities for the benefit of city residents by assuring the long term viability of the Defiance College on the lands historically occupied by the college through reasonable regulation of neighboring land uses to:
1. Preserve and enhance the pastoral atmosphere of the college campus by requiring neighboring properties to adhere to minimum landscaping standards;
2. Promote aesthetic compatibility between future structures and existing structures on and in the immediate vicinity of the campus by requiring neighboring properties to adhere to minimum structural design standards; and
3. Discourage the establishment of land uses in the immediate vicinity of the campus that directly or indirectly interfere with activities necessary to the accomplishment of the social, cultural and educational mission of Defiance College.
B. Preserve, protect and enhance established residential neighborhoods surrounding Defiance College by encouraging private investment in the maintenance, restoration and improvement of existing homes.
C. Encourage aesthetically unified development throughout the CO District.
D. Promote public safety by reducing the opportunity for conflict between pedestrian and vehicular traffic in an area that is uniquely characterized by higher than customary volume of pedestrian traffic.
E. Promote efficient management of vehicular traffic in an area that is uniquely characterized by both high volumes of traffic and higher than customary numbers of motor vehicle operators who are unfamiliar with the area.
F. Enhance public convenience, improve air quality, reduce noise and reduce fuel consumption by eliminating avoidable traffic delays and the acceleration, deceleration and idling of motor vehicles incident to those delays.
G. Protect the historic character of the CO District and historic structures within the district.
H. Ensure that future commercial development is compatible with the established neighborhood and Defiance College.
I. Provide an attractive gateway into the City of Defiance.
(3) Any structure, storage, use, practice, or operation within the CO District as defined on the zoning map or other supporting documentation adopted by the city is subject to the regulations of Subsection 1169.09(a) CO College Overlay District Regulations.
(b) PUD Planned Unit Development Overlay District.
(1) The purpose of the Planned Unit Development (PUD) Overlay District regulations is to provide an optional means to develop large tracts of land that are planned and constructed in a unified manner under single ownership at the time of construction. These regulations allow for more flexible, innovative and economic land development options than the regulations for the base zoning districts of this Code. Applicants who choose this option may arrange structures and circulation systems to take advantage of existing vegetation, natural topography and other physical features of the site and can provide additional site amenities.
(2) See Chapter 1171 Planned Unit Development Overlay District Regulations for district regulations.
(Ord. 7675. Passed 11-11-14.)